United News of Bangladesh

Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmad on Sunday expressed deep sorrow at the death of former Speaker Barrister Jamir Uddin Sircar, describing him as a distinguished parliamentarian and eminent legal expert. Sircar died at a hospital in the capital on Sunday at the age of 95. Barrister Jamir Uddin Sircar passes away In a condolence message, the Speaker prayed for the eternal peace of the departed soul and conveyed his heartfelt sympathies to the bereaved family. Sircar served as the Speaker of the Eighth Jatiya Sangsad from October 28, 2001 to January 25, 2009. Paying tribute to the former Speaker, Hafiz Uddin Ahmad said Sircar’s contributions to the country’s parliamentary democracy, legal profession and public service would be remembered with respect.

Meta has disabled a feature in its newly launched AI image-generation tool, Muse Image, following criticism that it automatically used photos from public Instagram accounts as references for creating AI-generated images. The decision, announced on Friday, came less than a week after Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, introduced Muse Image through its artificial intelligence assistant, Meta AI. AI brings challenges and opportunities for office assistants In a statement, Meta said the feature was intended to provide a creative tool while allowing users to control whether their public content could be referenced. However, the company acknowledged the criticism, saying it had "missed the mark" and confirmed the feature is no longer available. Like other AI-powered image generators, Muse Image creates images based on user prompts. However, it also automatically allowed photos from public Instagram accounts to be used as reference material, sparking privacy concerns. The feature prompted widespread criticism on social media, with users sharing instructions on how to prevent their Instagram content from being accessed by the AI tool. The entertainment industry also voiced concerns. The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) urged its members to update their Instagram privacy settings to protect their likenesses. Following Meta's decision, the union welcomed the move, saying that encouraging the creation of non-consensual digital replicas was inappropriate and that discontinuing the feature was the right step.

Argentina and Switzerland remained deadlocked at 1-1 after 90 minutes in their FIFA World Cup quarterfinal on Saturday, sending the match into extra time as the Swiss were reduced to 10 men following the late dismissal of Breel Embolo. Defending champions Argentina took the lead in the 10th minute when Alexis Mac Allister headed home from a Lionel Messi corner. Switzerland drew level in the second half through Dan Ndoye, keeping alive their hopes of reaching a World Cup semifinal for the first time. The winners of the match will face England in the semifinals on Wednesday in Atlanta. England secured their place with a 2-1 victory over Norway earlier on Saturday. Shortly after Switzerland equalised, Argentina midfielder Leandro Paredes was initially shown a yellow card for a challenge on Embolo. However, video replays indicated that Embolo had already been falling before any contact was made. After a review, officials determined that Embolo, who had already been booked earlier in the match, should instead receive the caution, resulting in his second yellow card and a red card. Switzerland were therefore forced to play the remainder of the match with 10 players. It marked the second time at this World Cup that a yellow card decision was corrected under the tournament's "mistaken identity" protocol, which allows the video assistant referee (VAR) to intervene when the wrong player is shown a yellow or red card.

The US military has launched a third round of strikes on Iran after accusing the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) of carrying out an attack on a Cyprus-flagged container ship in the Strait of Hormuz, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said. According to CENTCOM, the vessel caught fire and suffered engine damage during the alleged attack, leaving it unable to continue its voyage. It also said one crew member remains missing. Iran FM visits Oman for Strait of Hormuz transit talks The command said Iran had been given another opportunity to comply with the Memorandum of Understanding signed on June 16 after being held responsible for previous attacks on commercial vessels, but had failed to do so. In response, the United States launched further strikes aimed at weakening Iran's ability to target civilian mariners and commercial ships transiting through the Strait of Hormuz, CENTCOM said. With inputs from Al Jazeera

Two people were killed and four others injured in a shooting near a street festival in Toronto on Saturday, police said, after initially warning the public about an active shooter before later declaring the scene secure. Toronto police said six people were found with gunshot wounds following the shooting near St. Clair Avenue West and Arlington Avenue, where the Salsa on St. Clair festival was taking place. Police initially urged people to stay away from the area as officers responded to the incident. Later, they confirmed the scene had been secured but said the suspect or suspects had not yet been arrested. A heavy police presence remained around the festival site, which hosts the annual Latino-themed cultural celebration. Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he was "devastated" by the violence. "I am devastated by the senseless violence at the Salsa on St. Clair Festival that has claimed two lives and injured others," Ford wrote in a social media post. "My thoughts are with the victims, their families and everyone affected." Toronto, Canada's largest city, is considered one of North America's safest major cities. Fatal shootings, especially those involving multiple victims in public places, are relatively uncommon.

Former acting President and Speaker of Parliament Barrister Jamir Uddin Sircar passed away early Sunday while undergoing treatment at a hospital in the capital. He was 95. He breathed his last at 4:18am at Bangladesh Specialized Hospital in Shyamoli, Supreme Court Bar Association President Barrister AM Mahbub Uddin Khokon said. "Sir has left us. Arrangements are being made for his janazas and burial," Khokon said. He said Jamir Uddin Sircar had been suffering from various age-related health complications for a long time. He is survived by a daughter, Nilufar Jamir, and two sons, Barrister Nawshad Jamir and Naofel Jamir. His eldest son Nashad Jamir is the current MP elected from Panchagarh-1 with BNP ticket. A veteran politician and distinguished lawyer, Sircar served as Speaker of the Eighth Jatiya Sangsad and as acting President of Bangladesh from June 21 to September 6, 2002, following the resignation of then President Prof AQM Badruddoza Chowdhury. Born on December 1, 1931, in Nayabari village of Tetulia upazila in Panchagarh, Sircar was the son of Maulvi Muhammad Aziz Box. He obtained his bachelor's and master's degrees in History from the University of Dhaka before earning an LLB degree. He later qualified as a Barrister-at-Law from Lincoln's Inn in London. After completing his studies, he joined the legal profession on May 27, 1960, after enrolling with the then East Pakistan High Court. He became one of the country's leading constitutional, civil and criminal law experts. Sircar began his political career in 1945 through the then Student Federation. He was later associated with the Student Union, Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani's National Awami Party (NAP) and was also a founding member of the Awami Muslim League. He was one of the founding members of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). Before the party's formation, he was also associated with the Jatiyatabadi Ganatantrik Dal (Jagadal), established by President Ziaur Rahman. He later became a member of the BNP Standing Committee, a position he held until his death. During the Liberation War in 1971, Sircar was among the High Court lawyers who actively supported Bangladesh's independence. Recognised for his legal expertise, he represented Bangladesh at the United Nations General Assembly on five occasions between 1977 and 1981 during President Ziaur Rahman's tenure. His long public career included several ministerial positions. He served as State Minister for Housing and Public Works under President Ziaur Rahman, during which the construction of the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban was completed. He later served as State Minister for Foreign Affairs in the cabinet of President Justice Abdus Sattar. Following the BNP's victory in 1991, he became State Minister for Land before being appointed Minister for Education and later Minister for Science and Technology. In the short-lived Sixth Parliament in 1996, he served as Law Minister and introduced the bill that paved the way for the caretaker government system. Sircar was first elected to Parliament in 1979 from Dinajpur-1 as a BNP candidate. He was later elected from Dhaka-9 in 1991, from Panchagarh-1 in the elections of February 1996, June 1996 and 2001, and subsequently won the Bogura-6 by-election during the Ninth Parliament. Apart from politics and law, he was also an educationist and a prolific writer. His published works include The Origin and Evolution of Democracy, Parliamentary Rules at a Glance, Student Life in London, Law of the Sea, Student Movements in London, Bangladesh: Democratic Transition and Political Ups and Downs, Glimpses of International Law, From Pol Raj to Plassey and From the British Raj to Bangabhaban, Speaker in the Eighth Parliament, Law of International Rivers and Other Watercourses, and Stronger United Nations for a Peaceful Welfare World. His death cast a shadow of grief over the country's political and legal communities, with leaders and well-wishers gathering at his Dhanmondi residence to pay their respects. BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir expressed deep sorrow at his death and prayed for the eternal peace of his departed soul. BNP Standing Committee members Gayeshwar Chandra Roy and Nazrul Islam Khan also expressed their condolences.

Hundreds of firefighters backed by helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft struggled on Saturday to contain one of Spain's deadliest wildfires that erupted earlier this week and killed a least 12 people. The blazes, which also lashed France this week, came as parts of Western Europe are facing their third heat wave in six weeks. Europe is the world’s fastest-warming continent, with temperatures increasing twice as fast as the global average since the 1980s, according to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service. In Spain's Andalusia, a combination of light winds and high humidity are helping crews but the sheer size of the fire still poses challenges, Antonio Sanz, head of the region's emergency services, said. The fire has so far scorched some 66 square kilometers (25 square miles) of forest and farmland — about the size of Manhattan. Sanz said fire crews carried out controlled burns overnight around the perimeter of the fire, which broke out late Thursday in a semi-arid area near the Sierre de Los Filabres mountains in in Almería province, just as Spain was sizzling. Most of the victims, who are believed to be foreign nationals, died after ignoring shelter-in-place instructions, authorities said. Seven people died while on foot after abandoning their cars. Four of the dead were believed to be British because the steering wheel of their burned-out car was on the right side, as with British vehicles, regional authorities said. Sanz said Saturday that authorities had completed autopsies and DNA samples were collected to identify them. Spain’s Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares has spoken with his counterparts from the U.K., Belgium, Canada and the Netherlands about the fire, Spain's official EFE news agency reported. Almería is home to one of the largest communities of foreign nationals in Andalusia. Authorities proactively evacuated 1,448 people from some 11 areas. Many are fleeing the flames Jeffrey Kember and his wife, Christine, were watching a favorite TV show in their Los Pinos farmhouse when the blare of a siren alerted them to the fire. The couple jumped into their respective cars while also trying to help a neighbor with two toddlers. The husband described how they got separated and how he was unable to speak to his wife because she didn't have a phone on her. “I'm driving through the flames. It was actually flames. I though, ‘I can’t stop, I just gotta go,” he told The Associated Press, his wife now next to him outside an evacuation center. "It was eerie because all of a sudden I came out of the flames and it was all bright sunshine. It was like surreal.” Meanwhile, Spanish authorities arrested two people for ignoring evacuation orders and returning to a high-risk area, according to EFE. Authorities are still combing through the Bédar area in search for any victims. Europe withers in intense heat Spain has battled frequent and severe heat waves in recent years, with temperatures often exceeding 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit). Wind, high temperatures and little rainfall help small wildfires grow into unchecked blazes. Justice Minister Félix Bolaños on Saturday attributed the ferocity of the Almeira wildfire to a “climate emergency.” He said the fire, at its most intense, advanced as fast as 100 meters per minute (328 feet per minute.) Spain’s Meteorological Agency warned that the wildfire risk over the weekend will remain very high. In June, Spain experienced several days of record-setting heat, with over 1,000 excess deaths. Globally, 2025 was the third-hottest year on record, bringing several intense heat waves across Europe. Wildfires lash France Several wildfires remained active across France on Saturday as temperatures soared. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said that 32 people have been arrested across the country since the beginning of the summer in connection with wildfires. “Those unacceptable acts, which have disastrous consequences and mobilize our firefighters at the risk of their lives, now fall into the hands of the justice system,” he said. “We will continue our determined action and will not let anything slide.” French President Emmanuel Macron also weighed in, recalling in a post on X that nine out of 10 wildfires start because of human activity. More than 25,000 hectares (62,000 acres) of land have burned in France since the start of 2026, roughly double the area compared to the same period last year. France is experiencing the peak of its third heat wave this summer, with temperatures reaching 40 C across western and central areas and around 37 C (98 F) in Paris. In the French capital, the Eiffel Tower will close in the afternoon over the weekend instead of late at night, as it usually does. The Louvre and Orsay museum have also announced reduced opening hours because of the heat wave. Last month was France’s hottest June on record, with deaths surging by nearly a third during the hottest week. Spain and Portugal have faced deadly fires before Spain is no stranger to wildfires, with last year's fire season burning more than 393,000 hectares (971,000 acres). according to the European Forest Fire Information System, an area twice as large as London. Four people died. Spain's deadliest wildfire was in 1979, when 21 people perished in Lloret de Mar, a coastal town about an hour north of Barcelona. In 2017, a wildfire in neighboring Portugal left 66 people dead in Pedrogao Grande, located 200 kilometers (120 miles) northeast of Lisbon. In that blaze, 47 people died on one road while similarly attempting to flee in their cars.

Deputy Speaker Barrister Kayser Kamal on Saturday visited ailing former President and former Speaker Barrister Jamir Uddin Sircar at Bangladesh Specialised Hospital in the capital's Shyamoli area to enquire about his health. During the visit, the Deputy Speaker wished Sircar a speedy recovery and a long life. He also spoke with the attending physicians to learn about the latest progress of the former President's treatment and urged the authorities concerned to ensure that he continues to receive all necessary medical care. Praying for his early recovery, Kayser Kamal said, "I pray to Almighty Allah that you recover quickly and return to us in good health. I wish you sound health and a long life." The Deputy Speaker said Barrister Jamir Uddin Sircar had made significant contributions to the country's politics and parliamentary democracy over the years. He said Sircar's recovery was not only important for his family but was also eagerly awaited by the people of the country. Kayser Kamal also requested the nation to pray for the former President's swift recovery.